Ireland vs Australia: ‘He deserves it’ – Andy Farrell on picking Sam Prendergast over Jack Crowley

Saturday’s game, which has been arranged to celebrate the Irish Rugby Football Union [IRFU]’s 150th anniversary celebrations, pits Farrell against his predecessor Joe Schmidt, who took over as Australia boss in January.

Schmidt won three Six Nations titles and secured a first win over the All Blacks in six years as Ireland boss after a successful stint in charge of Leinster.

Farrell said Schmidt “deserves all the accolades and probably more” for his “phenomenal” achievements with Ireland.

“He’s the most successful coach in Irish rugby when you look at his time overall in Dublin,” added Farrell.

“We’ve got a lot to thank him about and I think it’s a nice story that we get to celebrate this game alongside him.

“I’m very grateful for that opportunity to Joe and David Nucifora [former IRFU high performance director] for bringing me over here.

“On top of that, the experience I gained under Joe, seeing how he does it on the inside has been invaluable to me and everyone who’s been coached by him. That’s a privilege.

“Coaching against him with New Zealand, that wasn’t as high profile because he wasn’t the head coach, but it was because you could see his DNA all over that anyway.

“We’ve been here before a little bit, when he comes back to these shores it’s a little bit different because he should be celebrated for everything he’s done for Irish rugby.”